Turnabout Mockery
by EmerMarie
Summary: Junk Fic: 21-year-old Miles Edgeworth is prosecuting yet another case, but the defense attorney seems to have something else in mind when it comes down to "winning" a case... And she seems to have a knack into ticking off his mentor.


**Disclaimer: I do not own Ace Attorney, Capcom does. I do, however, own Emer McLaughlin, Merhea McLaughlin, and Jamie Bon Kudo.**

**To my old readers: Yes, the three characters mentioned in the disclaimer above are the same ones that have been used in the dead "Requiem of the Crystal Golem" fanfic, the first story I've posted here. However, they're not the same as they were in the past, I've given them different origins, the sisters different surnames, and Maria's name has been changed to Emer. ****I might (read: WILL) use these three again in different fandoms, but we'll see. **

**I wrote this about half a year ago, but I didn't bother submitting this because I didn't find it fitting. I've written a bunch of "Junk Fics," most of which remain unfinished. But there have been some exceptions because they're one-shots. I was being an Ace Attorney nerd when I wrote this, but after mellowing out from video games and putting my focus on college work, I thought that this one-shot didn't look that good.**

**Plus, the actual case here doesn't really make a lot of sense, now that I think about it, and I really don't think that this is possible. But then again, there have been some cases in the games that didn't make much sense, either, like the spirit mediums and actual spirit channelings _happening right in the courtroom_... along with some other things, like that part on Turnabout Ablaze from _AAI: Miles Edgeworth_ involving the ceiling fans, which I will not include to avoid spoilers. Go easy on me.**

**In short, this is just a fanfic I made for fun and I don't expect it to be the greatest. I decided to post it because I figured it might give you a laugh. I will admit that I had a lot of fun writing this, though. I should try making more Ace Attorney fanfics in the future.**

**Enjoy, everyone! Don't go forging evidence now, or someone will penalize you!**

**EDIT: Did some modifications here, such as changing Emer's name.**

* * *

><p><strong>Turnabout Mockery<strong>

**June 12, 2012 - 9:45 A.M.**

**Courthouse Lobby No.14**

* * *

><p>. . . . . . . .<p>

_(So... the opening statement should be like this and...)_

Miles Edgeworth is currently sitting on a leather sofa that was outside of the courtroom, looking through a few papers for the upcoming trail. He fully memorized the defendant's name, the name of the only witness for this case, and even the defense attorney. Reading through the defense's small profile, he noticed that it was an attorney barely about half a year older than him. A twenty-one-year-old woman named Emer McLaughlin. Apparently, she is a somewhat respected defense attorney here, this case being her eighth. Out of all seven cases, she won six of them, with the only loss due to the defendant being proven guilty. . . by her?

"Edgeworth."

"...!" The young prosecutor looked up from the papers he was reading and saw an old man in blue. His mentor, Manfred von Karma.

"Sir," Edgeworth said.

"Do you know everything that is needed to this trail?" von Karma narrowed his eyes at him.

"Yes sir, I've memorized everything there is to know," the young prosecutor then spoke the details, "A mechanical engineer, Dr. Ivan Corriger, was killed in his apartment. The time of death was at approximately 2:00 in the morning on June 10th, and the cause was a shot to the back of the head and point blank range. The defendant, Allen Road, who was the victim's co-worker, was accused because of his fingerprints being on the murder weapon, a nine millimeter handgun."

"Very good," von Karma nodded curtly before looking at him sternly, "Edgeworth, keep in mind that I expect nothing short of perfection from you. I will be standing by you as your co-council."

"Yes sir."

"Do NOT fail me."

"I won't sir."

"Mr. Edgeworth, sir," a bailiff came to them and gave them a quick salute, "The court is about to go in session."

"Hmph," von Karma sneered as the young prosecutor stiffened slightly, "Edgeworth, be sure to crush the defendant's lies to oblivion."

". . . . . . . . . . Yes sir."

* * *

><p><strong>Courtroom No. 14 - 10:00 A.M.<strong>

* * *

><p>The sound of a gavel reached everyone's ears as the crowd quieted down.<p>

"The court will now begin the trail of Mr. Allen Road," the Judge spoke.

"The prosecution is ready, Your Honor," Edgeworth spoke.

"Likewise," the defense spoke.

Edgeworth took this moment to get a good look at the defense attorney, Emer McLaughlin, and was surprised to find that she looked more like a sixteen-year-old than a twenty-one-year-old. Her long brown hair, which reached down to the bottom of her back, made her look younger than she usually is, and her fairly short size (probably a five-foot-four, at least) made her all the more so. She wore black dress pants, a white collar shirt with a blue ribbon tied to a simple knot around her neck, giving it the appearance of a somewhat poorly made bow tie. White gloves were covering her hands, and, draped over her body, a black tailcoat that was connected with only one button. Her bright emerald-green eyes also stood out for some odd reason. When McLaughlin caught Edgeworth observing her, she gave him a strange look, but said nothing else.

Looking at the newspaper in her hand, Edgeworth noticed that it was talking about some sort of accident from three months ago.

It was then Edgeworth noticed that a tall young man walked up to where McLaughin was in the defense bench. McLaughlin smiled slightly as the young man handed her a small file before taking his spot as co-council next to her. The young man's face was fairly young, probably around Edgeworth's age, if not a bit older, but one thing about the young man struck him as odd:

The bandages wrapped around the right side of his face.

The young man's dark brown hair, which barely reached down to his shoulders, hid most of the bandages, making it a bit difficult to see them. The bandages were carefully wrapped over his right eye (and possibly his right ear), the bandages themselves being held just in place by the wraps around his forehead. The bandages alone made Edgeworth curious was to what happened to the young man, but decided to not think about it. Looking at the young man's appearance, he saw that he wore clothes that were nearly identical to McLaughlin's (even down to the white gloves), only his tailcoat wasn't buttoned up, revealing a dark gray vest over a white collar shirt with a red cloth tie, two things that McLaughlin herself didn't wear.

Another thing Edgeworth then noticed, was that neither of them, or more specifically, McLaughlin, wasn't wearing an attorney's badge. Well, then again, Edgeworth preferred to keep his prosecutor's badge in his pocket, so he figured that he shouldn't find it surprising, maybe she had the same preference.

"Miss McLaughlin," the Judge asked, "Who is that young man that just came here?"

"He is someone who works with me," she said simply as she used her thumb to rub her fingers on her left hand in a casual manner, "Or more specifically, a bodyguard, if you will. I asked him to do something for me, which is why he was a tad late, so I ask you not to give him any blame."

The young man next to her didn't say anything as he made a slight bow to the Judge with a hand over his heart. Come to think of it, in Edgeworth's opinion, the young man looked more like a butler than a co-council.

"I see. Very well," the Judge nodded before coughing a little, "Ahem, Mr. Edgeworth, your opening statement."

"Yes, Your Honor," Edgeworth said as he took out a piece of paper, "The victim is a mechanical engineer who worked as the mechanical plant on the other side of town, Dr. Ivan Corriger. He was shot in the back of the head at point blank range inside of his own apartment. The murder weapon, a nine millimeter handgun, belonged to the victim. The defendant, Allen Road, was then accused because of his _fingerprints being found on the murder weapon_. The prosecution will prove his guilt," he then held up a photo, "Your Honor, I have a photo of the crime scene here."

"The court accepts this photo into evidence."

"Ten minutes."

"Pardon me?" the Judge looked at Manfred von Karma wide-eyed.

Both McLaughlin and her co-council gave von Karma odd looks. Edgeworth, meanwhile, only turned to look at his mentor.

"A prediction, Your Honor," von Karma spoke bore piercingly snapping his fingers, "I predict that this trail will end **ten minutes** from now. We have no time to waste, so let's get on with the trail."

As the crowd started muttering, a voice rang out, "Hey! Old man!"

The two men in the prosecution's bench looked over at McLaughlin, who had a rather evil glint in her eye with an amused smirk, "Why the rush?"

"Miss McLaughlin," von Karma looked irritated, "Stop asking trivial questions and cooperate."

"Not until you answer my question, old man," she waggled her finger the same way von Karma would do it while speaking with an amused tone. She then shrugged, "So why the rush? Do you have a tea party to attend to?"

A few snickers from the crowd can be heard. Edgeworth's brow twitched. _(Of all the _irksome_...! She _dares_ to _mock_ Manfred von Karma, the legendary prosecutor?)_

"And yes, I dare mock you," McLaughlin's smirk was still plastered on her face. Meanwhile, her co-council only rolled his eye slightly, but whether it was for McLaughlin or von Karma, no one could tell.

_(...Did she just read my mind?)_ Edgeworth thought, feeling slightly uncomfortable, but didn't dare to show his reaction, especially with von Karma next to him.

von Karma was not impressed, "Why you little...!"

"Hey hey hey, wait wait wait," McLaughlin cut him off, "I thought you said this trail needs to end in, like, eight minutes and thirty-seven seconds starting now? How about you shut your cranky old yap and let the prosecutor call his first witness so I can do my cross-examination already. I'm getting bored here. Yawn," she finished her last sentence with a mock yawn.

The crowd soon gave up and started laughing like crazy, it took about five minutes for them to calm down once the Judge slammed his gavel in order to have order, though it was rather hard to do since he was also amused by McLaughlin's antics.

_(Does this woman have any respect for the court?)_ Edgeworth's eyes narrowed while hearing von Karma growl slightly, though he did wonder why von Karma didn't attempt to raise his voice.

"Oh, by the way," McLaughlin cut Edgeworth from his thoughts, "I respect the court, I just don't respect the cranky old man."

_(I think she just read my mind again.)_ Edgeworth blinked.

"You better stop this trivial matter," von Karma's eyebrow twitched, "Or else I will-"

"Hold me in contempt of court?" she cut him off with a chipper grin, "Well, too bad, you can't. Because I'm the only defense attorney that's available today!"

Once Edgeworth noticed that the crowd has quieted down (and after carefully checking that von Karma won't try to rip McLaughlin's head off), he saw the defense lawyer motioning him to call the first witness already.

"...Will Detective Dick Gumshoe please come to the stand?" It was then Edgeworth noticed that the young man next to his opponent made almost little to no reaction during the one-sided spat between McLaughlin and von Karma. In fact, the bodyguard seemed a bit disgusted at von Karma's ways of trying to get McLaughlin to quiet down. Once the recognizable detective, who was wearing his usual tan trench coat, came up to the witness stand, Edgeworth then spoke, "Detective, please testify to the court about the details of this case."

"With pleasure, sir!" Gumshoe saluted.

* * *

><p><strong>Witness Testimony - Crime Scene<strong>

_"The crime took place two days ago at 2:00 A.M. in Dr. Corriger's own apartment."_

_"The victim was shot once in the back of the head at point blank range."_

_"We found out that the ballistic markings from the bullet and handgun match."_

_"With this and the defendant's fingerprints being on the gun, there's no doubt that the defendant is the real killer."_

* * *

><p>"Hmm..." the Judge took this into thought, "That seems about right. Well, Miss McLaughlin, your cross-examination, please."<p>

"Okey-dokey, Smokey!" she grinned.

"That woman needs to know when to shut her mouth," Edgeworth heard von Karma mutter.

"I heard that, you know," McLaughlin spoke, to Edgeworth's surprise, "Now be quiet, Old Stinky. At least the happy youngster prosecutor next to you is behaving himself."

_(When did I suddenly get involved in this?)_ Edgeworth's eyebrow twitched, "...Miss McLaughlin. Will you please do your cross-examination now and get this over with?"

"Sure thing, Edgester!"

_(...Edgester?)_ Edgeworth pondered. _(It does have a rather... interesting sound to it. I better not think about it too much, though.)_

* * *

><p><strong>Cross-Examination - Crime Scene<strong>

_"The crime took place two days ago at 2:00 A.M. in Dr. Corriger's own apartment."_

_"The victim was shot once in the back of the head at point blank range."_

_"We found out that the ballistic markings from the bullet and handgun match."_

"**WAIT A SEC!"**

* * *

><p>"Let me clarify something," McLaughlin looked at a piece of paper, the same one from that tiny file that her bodyguard had given her earlier, "Even though the ballistic markings matched with the murder weapon, the bullet itself was mushed slightly. Care to explain this?"<p>

"Oh, that's because the bullet was found in the wall," Gumshoe explained, "The bullet went through the victim's head and entered into the wall afterwards."

"So you only found that _one bullet_?"

"That's right. The gun was showed to have been fired once, so the forensics had to search for that one bullet. And just in case you ask, they found it above the fireplace. It barely missed the painting that was hanging above it, too."

"I see," McLaughlin seemed satisfied with this, though something in her expression seemed a little strange to the young prosecutor, "Do you mind adding that part in your testimony?"

"Sure, why not?" Gumshoe shrugged.

* * *

><p><em>"With this and the defendant's fingerprints being on the gun, there's no doubt that the defendant is the real killer."<em>

_"There's also that single bullet to consider."_

**"NOT SO FAST!"**

* * *

><p>"Detective Gumshoe," the defense attorney spoke.<p>

"Huh?" Gumshoe had a confused look on his face, "Uh, yes?"

"While everyone here, including myself, can agree with the possibility that the defendant is the _real killer_..."

Edgeworth's eyes widened slightly. McLaughlin herself seems convinced that Allen Road is the killer, but a defense attorney's job is to get the defendant declared _innocent_, not guilty! That's a prosecutor's job! Even though this case could mean an easy win for him, why does it seem like that she's taken control? Stealing a slight glance to his left, he saw that his mentor seemed rather irritated at him. Probably because he didn't raise an objection yet. Then again, he wasn't able to find a proper time to raise one yet.

"...And you say that you found only one bullet, correct?" the defense's words broke Edgeworth from his thoughts. He rose a brow, what was so important about the single bullet?

"I just told you, we only found one," the detective said with a finger raised.

"If that's the case, then why did Mr. Kudo here find another one at the scene of the crime just this morning?" McLaughlin rose a brow while her co-council nodded slightly.

A stunned silence loomed in the courtroom as Edgeworth stiffened. How could have the forensics...? He then noticed that McLaughlin referred her bodyguard to be Mr. Kudo... is that his name?

"It's not surprising that the second bullet was missed, though," McLaughlin spoke, as she looked at the crime scene photo, "After all, the gun we have in the prosecution's possession was shown to have been _fired once_, and the forensics found the bullet that has the marks that match with it. Not to mention, the second bullet, the one that Mr. Kudo found, was fairly well hidden. In the crime scene photo, you can barely see a bullet hole being obscured by the fern plant's leaves in the background."

_(So that explains it.)_ Edgeworth nodded slightly before speaking up, "And what about the ballistic markings for that second bullet?"

The defense attorney looked at him, surprised, "Oh, wow. Now you're talking, I was wondering where you put your voice." Edgeworth glared at her in response, but she remained unfazed, "Anyway, to answer your question. The ballistic markings were different from the ones found on the supposed bullet that killed Dr. Corriger," she then held out another handgun in a bag, identical to that of the murder weapon, "It matches with the gun here that Mr. Kudo found and... Hey, where did you find this again?"

"It was found in the victim's gun locker, it wasn't that hard to open since it was a _letter-base code lock_. It's located in his bedroom," Kudo spoke for the first time, "The tags show that the handgun belongs to him. There are other handguns, but the one I brought here is the only one that showed signs of being used for shooting recently."

**"OBJECTION!"**

"Then that second bullet has nothing to do with this case!" Edgeworth objected before realizing something. _(Wait... "supposed"?)_ Regardless, he continued, "The victim was shot _once_ in the head! The _traces of brain cells_ that were found on the bullet proves it!"

"I'm not done yet," the young woman smiled, "Once we confirmed that the ballistic markings were different, therefore matching with this gun here, I decided to send the bullet and gun to forensics for some testing, and here's where it gets strange."

"Care to tell us then, Miss McLaughlin?" the Judge spoke.

"Very well," she then spoke up, "According to the autopsy report, the victim has a _single gunshot wound_. Yet, here's the strange thing: The victim's blood is on _both bullets_." Silence loomed in the courtroom again, but McLaughlin continued talking, "There are even traces of the victim's _brain cells_ on _both bullets_. Which raises this question... Which bullet is the one that killed Dr. Corriger? The one that came from the gun with the defendant's fingerprints, or the one that Mr. Kudo has found?"

"Were you able to find any fingerprints on that gun?" Edgeworth asked, his eyes narrowed.

"According to the report that Mr. Kudo just gave me, the forensics did indeed find _traces of fingerprints_," McLaughlin answered, "The prints themselves were _wiped_, so it's unclear as to whose fingerprints they are. However, they were able to confirm one thing."

"And that would be?"

"The forensics managed to find _a section of a fingerprint on the trigger_, and they found that the print doesn't match with the defendant's."

"What?" Edgeworth tensed slightly, glancing at von Karma, he saw him glaring at the defense attorney with complete disgust. The young prosecutor found it amazing that she wasn't fazed by von Karma's glares at all; however, he wouldn't dare mention it out loud, especially with von Karma next to him.

**"OBJECTION!"**

"Bah!" Manfred von Karma was the one to speak this time, "Both guns belong to the victim! It's not the least bit odd that the victim's fingerprints are on the gun!"

McLaughlin ignored the tone in von Karma's voice, though she does looked a little... miffed, "...I never said that it was _the victim's_ fingerprints, Old Karamel."

"W-What?" von Karma scowled, looking a bit miffed at the new nickname she just gave him.

"And before I continue," McLaughlin now had a somewhat ticked look on her face, despite her smile, "How about you shut your cranky old mouth and let the prosecutor himself do the talking? After all, _Mr. Edgeworth the Edgester_ is the _prosecutor_ for this case, not you, Old Karamel. Oh, and by the way," she sang with a sick and sweet grin as she lifted her right wrist, revealing a watch, "It's already been twenty-five minutes, your ten minute prediction turned out to be all WRONG-O!"

_(So that's why she insulting Mr. von Karma.)_ Edgeworth blinked with an eyebrow raised slightly, not daring to look at von Karma or whatever his reaction could be right now, _(She was insulting him because she wanted me to speak my theories. And in order to do that, she deliberately stalled for that ten minute prediction to end.)_ He then spoke, "If I may say something, Miss McLaughlin?"

"Shoot," she smiled.

"Since your... assistant was able to bring us the evidence that a second bullet was used, the question it brings was which was the killing bullet, correct?"

"Yes, go on."

"I have a witness who claims that he saw the bullet being fired," Edgeworth said with a piece of paper in his hand, "If we get him to present his testimony to us, we may be able to find out which bullet killed the victim."

"Hmm..." she seemed to take this into thought, "And this witness's name... it's Randy Omar, is it not?"

_(...! How did she...?)_ "Yes, it is. Why do you ask?"

"No reason, really," McLaughlin said with an amused look on her lips, "I just look forward to cross-examining that witness. Your Honor," she looked up at the Judge, "I'll let the prosecution have a thirty minute recess to prepare their witness for their upcoming testimony. In return, I would like to take a look at the handgun in the prosecution's possession, I'll give it back once I'm done with it. Is that okay with you, Mr. Edgeworth?"

"Hmph," von Karma huffed, "As if we will-"

_**KA-TAK!**_

Everyone, except for Kudo, who had a bored look on his face, looked at both the defense attorney and von Karma in stunned silence (although Edgeworth didn't dare to show his state of shock), for McLaughlin just threw a paper ball at the old veteran prosecutor.

"I didn't ask you, Old Karamel!" she sang with a ticked look on her face, again with a twitchy smile, "I asked the happy youngster prosecutor next to you!"

_(I wouldn't classify myself as _happy_, but...)_ Edgeworth simply shook his head, giving up on it, "The prosecution... accepts the defense's proposal." _(Thirty minutes is more than enough time to prepare a witness.)_

While trying to ignore von Karma's glares, the young prosecutor waited for the judge to officially declare the recess. Once the Judge did so, Edgeworth quietly took the handgun out from his bag as McLaughlin and Kudo walked up towards him, and handed it to the defense attorney.

"Thanks," she said as she turned, letting Kudo take the gun, "I'll make sure that Mr. Kudo brings the gun back safely once the tests are finished."

"Tests?" Edgeworth rose a brow. Unfortunately, McLaughlin and Kudo left the courtroom with the gun before he could properly ask. _(I wonder what she's up to... What kind of tests is she planning to put the gun through?)_

"Edgeworth."

"Yes, sir?" he turned to his mentor.

"While I do not understand what that foolish girl is up to, do NOT let her make us lose our case."

"I won't, sir."

"I'm going to prepare our witness," von Karma gave a small huff as his cane tapped against the floor, "Do as you please during the recess, but I highly recommend finding out what that pathetic fly is up to."

"I will do what I can, sir," Edgeworth made a small bow as both of them left the courtroom.

* * *

><p><strong>11:11 A.M.<strong>

**Courtroom Lobby No. 12**

* * *

><p>For once, Miles Edgeworth was stumped.<p>

Not even three minutes has passed since the recess began, and he still couldn't come up with a possible reason why McLaughlin decided to take the gun. While standing, he scratched his head a little. He knew that "erasing" the evidence is impossible, especially since all results have been recorded and shown to the court anyway, and from what he can see, McLaughlin isn't that stupid. He thought about the bullets, according to the report that Kudo brought in, both bullets showed signs of passing through the victim's brain, yet the autopsy report states that the victim died from a _single shot_ to the back of the head. If that's the case, then why is McLaughlin making the _gun_ go through a few tests?

_(She's on to something.)_ Edgeworth's eyes then narrowed. _(She's doing everything she can to get a criminal to walk free.)_

"Excuse me. Mister?"

The prosecutor snapped out of his thoughts and looked around a bit until he noticed a young girl, probably around ten or eleven years of age, with short brown hair and bright blue eyes standing in front of him. Her red overalls and white shirt being the most eye-catching.

"Do you need something?" he rose a brow at the large brown file folder she was holding.

"No, but I was wondering," the young girl looked around, "Have you seen my Big Sis anywhere?"

The prosecutor tilted his head slightly in slight confusion, "Pardon me to say this, but I do not know who your older sister even is."

"Oh, sorry, heh," she had an embarrassed look on her face, "She's a _defense attorney_ here, her name's _Emer_."

Edgeworth rose a brow, "Emer...?" _(Where have I heard that name before?)_

"Oh, right, I forgot to introduce myself," she smiled, "My name's Merhea. Merhea McLaughlin."

"Miles Edgeworth," he said with a nod before realizing something, "Wait, McLaughlin? The defense attorney, Emer McLaughlin? Then," he pointed at her, "_You're_ that woman's sister?" _(They don't look alike at all... especially their clothes.)_

"Huh?" Merhea looked up at him, "You've met her already?"

"She is my opponent in court," Edgeworth answered, "She's not here right now, I think she went to see the forensics for some tests to be made."

"Huh," she looked up in thought, "Cool. I take it she's teasing you already?"

"I wouldn't exactly say _'tease'_, but she does have the nerve to cut off Mr. von Karma from speaking."

"von Karma...?" she looked up in thought again, obviously thinking of something, "Isn't that the old coot who has a perfect record full of nothing but guilty verdicts for like thirty-five or something years?"

_(She's done her homework.)_ Edgeworth thought. _(Then again, her sister is a defense lawyer.)_ "I wouldn't call him an 'old coot', but yes. He is obsessed with perfection, in both his job and in his personal life."

"I see. You know," Merhea tilted her head slightly, "Sometimes I can't help but wonder. What exactly is the definition of 'perfection' anyway?"

_(What is she talking about?)_ Edgeworth rose a brow, "To put it rather broadly, 'perfection' is a state of completeness and flawlessness."

"I know that. It's just that I can't help but think about what Big Sis told me once. 'Practice makes perfect, yet nobody's perfect.'" she then looked up at him, "Rather contradictory, wouldn't you think?"

_("Practice makes perfect, yet nobody's perfect?")_ He thought. He tried to think of a proper answer, but couldn't, forcing him to admit, "That... does seem a bit odd." He then decided to change the subject, "What's with the large file folder?"

"Oh, this?" Merhea looked down at the file folder in her arms, "This is stuff Big Sis asked me to bring her. I think it's evidence or something for the trail she's currently working in."

_(More evidence?)_ Edgeworth rose a brow, mentally cursing at the fact that the defense was getting all of the important evidence, but decided not to comment about it in front of her. He then thought of something, "What do you think about this case? That is, if you know anything about it."

"What do I think?" she tilted her head again with a shrug, "According to Big Sis, she 99% sure that the guy she's defending is the _real culprit_."

"What...?" _That_... threw him off, but he quickly recovered, "But a defense attorney is supposed to get a defendant declared _innocent_. Getting them guilty is a _prosecutor's_ job."

Merhea didn't answer as she looked behind him, making him do the same. Soon enough, he found Emer McLaughlin staring up at him in the face, being only a few inches shorter than him.

"If that's the case, then why am I trying to fill in the _remaining one percent_?" she simply spoke with a smile, "Can you answer that?"

It took Edgeworth a moment to come up with an answer, "...You're trying to run a perfect investigation, no doubt."

"Pfft... Ha!" she laughed, "Yeah, right. The only time I ever bother to 'strive for perfection' is whenever I want an extra continue." She quoted the brief part with her fingers.

Merhea rolled her eyes, "You and your games, Big Sis. Here," she held out the file holder to her older sister, "Here's the stuff you asked me to bring to you."

"Ah, thanks a bunch, Lil Sis. This'll help greatly. And hey!" McLaughlin took out some papers, some of which were held together by clips, "You even made copies for the prosecution, too!"

"Well, I only did what you asked me to do," Merhea simply shrugged.

"Still, thanks. Here, Edge," she handed Edgeworth a small pile of papers, "These are some results from the tests I asked the forensics to make. Mr. Kudo isn't back with the results from the guns yet, but he should be back shortly. I'll be sure to get you a copy once he comes back."

"Er..." Edgeworth, while slightly irked at the little nickname she gave him, reluctantly took the papers and looked at them, "I appreciate it...?" He made sure that his questioning tone didn't show, "I only have one thing to ask. Why are you helping me? Especially since you're defending a killer here."

McLaughlin narrowed her eyes at him, as did Merhea. The older sister spoke with venom in her voice, "Don't put words in my mouth. I said no such thing. To me, there's _no such thing_ as a defendant, only _witnesses_." When the prosecutor gave her a strange look she continued, "To be honest, I could care less about the defendant. All I'm after is the _truth_. Once I find out the truth of the cases I'm assigned in, I'm satisfied."

"Truth...?" he rose an eyebrow.

"If you ask me," she said as she looked at one of the papers, "There's a reason why defense attorneys and prosecutors exist in the first place," she then looked at him, "Do you know why that is?"

"Why not humor me and say it," Edgeworth smiled cooly, trying to intimidate her a little.

She looked up from the paper, "First of all, quit acting like Old Karamel, you're making a fool out of yourself enough to the point of me laughing to death," McLaughlin spoke with a bored look on her face, causing Edgeworth to flinch inwardly while Merhea merely watched where the conversation was going, "And because of that, you just admitted to me about one thing: You _really don't know_ what it truly means to be a lawyer, and neither does Old Karamel."

"W-what?" he almost sweated slightly.

"Yes, I will admit freely that Old Karamel is a genius in prosecuting," McLaughlin then had a serious look on her face, "But he is using it the wrong way. All he's after is a _guilty verdict_, he doesn't care whether _the defendant_ is innocent or not. All because of this _flawed concept_ called _'perfection.'_"

"But you just said that you could care less about the defendant!" Edgeworth countered. _(Flawed "perfection"? Is this woman mad?)_

"I did indeed, but," she didn't bother denying it as she raised a finger, "Unlike the attorneys that are driven by the selfish desire to 'win,' _I'm_ driven by the selfish desire to find the _truth_. Here in court, there shouldn't even be a concept known as 'winning' and 'losing'. All that will do is make _innocent people_ get hurt and ruin their lives forever."

"That is nothing more than foolish nonsense to Mr. von Karma," Edgeworth's eyes narrowed.

"Maybe so, but is it foolish nonsense to _you_?"

_(...No... it's not...)_ Edgeworth didn't answer, but couldn't deny that her logic is true to him... somewhat.

McLaughlin looked at her watch on her right wrist, "Hmph, only ten minutes left. Come on, Merhea," as the two girls were about to leave, the older sister stopped for a moment to speak, "Miles Edgeworth."

Edgeworth looked at her, surprised that she had the nerve to call him by his full name.

"I don't know what's going on through your mind," she spoke with her back facing him, "But if you really think that what I've just said to you is nothing more than foolish nonsense, then you're _doomed_."

"...?" A slightly confused look reached his eyebrows.

McLaughlin spoke again, "One of these days, years from now... _You_ might end up being in the _defendant's chair_," she turned her head to face him, her emerald green eyes narrowed, "And the prosecutor for that case will most likely be none other than _Manfred von Karma himself_."

_(Such nonsense...!)_ He glared at her before realizing that she just mentioned von Karma by his full name.

A sick smile creeped on her lips, "And that case... will be the _downfall for _one_ of you_. Oh, and one more thing. For the sake of your future," her creepy smile widened slightly, "_Don't go killing any mockingbirds_. von Karma has already made that same mistake... for over _thirty-five years_." Having finished her rather cryptic speech, Emer and Merhea McLaughlin left the lobby in order to return to the courtroom.

_("Don't go killing any mockingbirds"?)_

Miles Edgeworth pondered over McLaughlin's words. Truth. No such thing as winning or losing. No such thing as defendants. Only witnesses exist. A trial in which he might end up being the defendant, with Manfred von Karma being the prosecutor. The result being the possible downfall for one of them...

He shuddered slightly at the thought before questioning one thing:

What did she mean by "killing a mockingbird"? And what did she mean by von Karma making the same "mistake" for over thirty-five years?

* * *

><p><strong>Courtroom No. 14 - 11:45 A.M.<strong>

* * *

><p>"The court will now reconvene," the Judge spoke after he slammed his gavel.<p>

"The defense is ready, Your Honor," McLaughlin bowed slightly. Her younger sister was next to her, although she was actually sitting on a tall stool in order to see what's going on.

"The prosecution is ready, Your Honor," Edgeworth spoke, not daring to look at von Karma for the moment, and noticed something absent from McLaughlin's side. _(It looks like Mr. Kudo isn't back with the results from those tests yet.)_

"Very good, Mr. Edgeworth," the Judge spoke to him, "You may call your witness."

"Very well," he stopped very briefly when he remembered McLaughlin's words.

_Don't go killing any Mockingbirds_.

Taking a very quiet breath to calm down, he spoke again, "Witness, please come to the stand."

A man in his late thirties walked up.

"Witness, please state your name and occupation."

"Randy Omar," the witness said with a shrug, "I work at the same division Dr. Corriger was in. He's my boss, so uh, yeah."

"Please testify about what you saw."

Omar shrugged in response, "All right."

* * *

><p><strong>Witness Testimony - The Gunshot<strong>

_"If you want to know what I was doing at the Doc's place. I was staying with him for the night."_

_"I woke up at around two or something in the morning at the sound of some voices."_

_"I thought it was a robber, so I went out there to see what was going on."_

_"I then found Dr. Corriger and Mr. Road arguing about something._

_Seconds afterwards a loud "BANG!" went out!"_

_"I remained hidden for a while and then called the police shortly after Mr. Road left."_

* * *

><p>"That seems to make a bit of sense," the Judge mumbled to himself before looking at the defense attorney, "Miss McLaughlin, your cross-examination."<p>

"All righty," A grin was on her face. And from what Edgeworth could see, she was writing everything she heard down on a piece of paper with a pen.

**"OBJECTION!"**

von Karma was the one to have raised the objection, "There is no need to cross-examine our witness."

_(As much as I would like to possibly agree with him, I don't think McLaughlin would do the same thing.)_ Edgeworth had a slightly bored look on his face before noticing that McLaughlin had a _very annoyed_ look on her face. Merhea also has the same reaction, but a small hint of a smirk on was the younger child's lips.

"Mr. Edgeworth," she simply said as she tightly gripped her pin in her left hand. Her smile and eyebrows were twitching.

"Do you need something, Miss McLaughlin?" he did his best to remain polite, but her glares were actually beginning to _scare_ him.

"No, thank you. But if you value your. . . sanity, I suggest you move to your right a bit."

"Er..." Edgeworth blinked, at a loss for words, "Sorry?"

"If you _really_ value your sanity, and maybe possibly your life," she added that last bit with a sick-amused tone, "I highly recommend that you move a few steps to your right."

"Hmph," von Karma also had a very irritated look on his face, causing Edgeworth to move a few steps to the right like McLaughlin suggested, in hopes of avoiding some bloodshed, "And why are you asking him something as foolish as-"

_**KRAK!**_

Dead silence.

"If... you keep interrupting me," McLaughlin spoke to von Karma through the shocked dead silence, "I won't be so merciful next time."

Edgeworth figured that it should be safe to step back to where he originally was, but the small black stick sticking out on the tiny wall (right behind to where Edgeworth was standing just seconds earlier) behind the prosecution's bench prevented him from doing so. A few seconds later, once making sure that von Karma won't try to provoke the defense attorney again, he found the nerves to grab the small black stick and pull it out, which took a moment. Taking a moment to closely examine it, he found that it was the very same pen that McLaughlin was using earlier, the pen itself completely unscathed, except for the cap, which was mushed slightly. Taking another quick look at it, he noticed that this probably wasn't the first time the pen was thrown in this manner.

_(That McLaughlin is strong.)_ Edgeworth noted as he stared at the pen again, inwardly amazed at the rather pristine condition. _(I don't think I'd want to see what would happen if Franziska was around right now.)_ Taking a small breath to regain his nerves, he turned to McLaughlin, "Do you need your pen back?"

"Throw it," she instantly spoke as she held her hand out, "And make it a good one."

With a quick but elegant movement of the right arm, Edgeworth threw McLaughlin's pen back to her, which she caught with ease with just two fingers from her left hand.

"Thank you," she then took out a small notepad from her pocket and scribbled something down while mumbling something that Edgeworth was barely able to catch until it became nothing more than mere gibberish, "No good freaking sick freak Karamel... fffff..." She continued to scribble something down before putting the cap back on her pen and slammed her right hand on the desk, a smile on her face, "Well! Let's get on with the cross-examination now, shall we?"

"Yes," Edgeworth instantly decided to take this moment to take over, "Please do."

"At least he agrees," the young prosecutor heard Merhea mutter.

* * *

><p><strong>Cross-Examination - The Gunshot<strong>

_"If you want to know what I was doing at the Doc's place. I was staying with him for the night."_

**"WAIT A SEC!"**

* * *

><p>"Forgive me if I'm sounding nosy," McLaughlin said as she looked at a piece of paper on her bench, "Why were you staying with him that night?"<p>

Edgeworth considered raising an objection, but decided against it, mainly because of McLaughlin. From what he was able to witness since the beginning of the trail, she does _not_ tolerate anyone interrupting her cross-examinations. Not one bit. So far, Edgeworth was able to remain on McLaughlin's good side, and he'd rather keep it that way for now. But still, he couldn't help but wonder what she is up to. He figured it was just best to listen in and see what happens. Glancing at von Karma, he saw that the veteran prosecutor looked very tempted to raise an objection while glaring at McLaughlin, who, surprisingly, wasn't bothered at all by it. To Edgeworth, he was used to seeing every defense attorney being intimidated by von Karma (or himself, for that matter); but McLaughlin, along with her co-council, Mr. Kudo, and even her little sister, Merhea... those three weren't bothered at all.

He shook the thoughts out of his mind as he listened to what the witness was saying.

"I was working overtime with Dr. Corriger, my boss," Randy Omar answered, "My home residence is about two hours from where I work. I was literally exhausted once the job was finished for the day, and Dr. Corriger has a spare bedroom in his house, so he offered me a place to sleep for the night. Anyway..."

* * *

><p><em>"I woke up at around two or something in the morning at the sound of some voices."<em>

_"I thought it was a robber, so I went out there to see what was going on."_

_"Then I found Dr. Corriger and Mr. Road arguing about something._

_Seconds afterwards a loud "BANG!" went out!"_

_"I remained hidden for a while and then called the police shortly after Mr. Road left."_

**"WAIT A SEC!"**

* * *

><p>"So what you're saying is that you didn't try to stop the person who killed your boss?" McLaughlin asked as she glanced at her sister, who had a suspicious look on her face.<p>

"Well, it was rather dark," Omar shrugged, "I mean, it was around two in the morning when that happened, right? The lights were suppose to be off at that time you know."

"I'm sorry, but I'm having a hard time believing you on that," she shook her head, "If I may say something, whenever you're in a conversation with someone, you would normally have the lights on, wouldn't you?"

"...!" Omar froze and broke a sweat.

"Well?" McLaughlin smiled as she was leaning on the bench with her left elbow, "Are you going to answer my question?"

"Well, I guess one normally would, but..."

"You say you hear an argument," she and her sister turned to face each other for a moment, "But it seems rather wrong to do your arguing in the dark now, don't you think?" she turned to the prosecution, "Perhaps Mr. Edgeworth would like to speak his opinion."

Edgeworth blinked at the mention of his name, but decided to play along, "Yes, indeed. I do find it rather odd."

"I'm glad you agree, because this man here," her smile slowly turned into a smirk, "... is _lying_."

Now it was finally Edgeworth turn to smirk, "Oh, really? And I have suppose you have evidence to prove that?"

"Only part of it," McLaughlin spoke in a polite, yet casual, tone, "I'm expecting Mr. Kudo to be back with the other part, in other words, the results, soon."

"And where is the first part of your evidence?" Edgeworth played along, for he was actually beginning to enjoy this little game, even though something about this whole was actually _scaring_ him a little, "I'd like to see it, as well as everyone else here in the courtroom."

"Very well," she said as she lifted her arms similar to the way Franziska would've done before clapping her fists together, the fingers touching, "I present to you..."

Then, after doing a "pulling" motion, a piece of paper materialized from her hands.

"...This little note."

Edgeworth glanced at the witness, Randy Omar, and saw that he sweated a little even more. More importantly, though, he was slightly amazed at McLaughlin's actions just now, "So you decided to do a simple magician's trick."

"Indeed," she smiled as she held it out, "This is a note that shows that this witness... is involved with the murder of Dr. Corriger."

Edgeworth's eyes widened slightly, "Where did you find that?"

"I didn't find it, my sister did," her smile still in place, "According to her, she found this among the witness's belongings. Quite well hidden, I must admit."

"What exactly do you mean by 'well hidden'?" Edgeworth almost jumped slightly as he heard von Karma speak with venom in his voice.

Strangely, McLaughlin wasn't annoyed by him this time, for she smiled again, "Let's just say... that my sister has an obsession with... _puzzles_."

"Puzzles?" the Judge, who remained quiet most of the time, questioned.

"Perhaps I should let my sister explain, Your Honor," she turned to the young child, "Merhea, if you please."

"Sure thing!" the younger sister grinned like a kid would at a candy store as she held out a small colorful cube, "This is the small box that the note was hidden in," she pressed her finger against it, "It may look like a colorful box at first glance, but it's actually a very hard puzzle!" She pressed a certain part of the box as her finger slid it, a small clicking sound was heard as the box opened, "I've already solved the puzzle, but we found the note hidden in here once I solved it in the middle of the recess!"

After waiting for the Judge to regain order in the courtroom once they started muttering, McLaughlin then spoke, this time _without_ her smile, "I will read it to you now." She took a small breath and recited the words:

_"R.O.,_

_Work overtime so that way Corriger will let you stay with him._

_Once you are there, when Corriger is asleep, unlock the door and we'll take him out."_

_A.R."_

A long silence loomed in the courtroom as Edgeworth noticed von Karma looking confused and very irritated, and Edgeworth knew why. To von Karma, a defense attorney should be frustrated, intimidated even, but here... the defense attorney has taken total control of the courtroom, but not in the way one normally would. This defense attorney... she was actually _helping_ the prosecution prove the defendant guilty. Almost every time von Karma tried to raise an objection, she would shoot him down. Whenever Edgeworth does, though, she would calmly present the evidence that could either prove or disprove a theory.

_(Would she have been any different of she were a _prosecutor_?)_ Edgeworth finally thought. He blinked at McLaughlin when he saw her give him a strange but knowing smirk-like smile, as if she was answering the question in his mind.

_No._

"As you can see here," McLaughlin turned her attention back to the small note in hand, "I sent both Mr. Kudo and my sister to investigate everything we have, and the results have been coming along quite nicely," she held the note up, "We did a handwriting analysis..." a glint was in her eye, her smile wiped off her face, "...and discovered that it matches with the _defendant's handwriting_."

Edgeworth blinked, with something like that, there's no doubt that the defendant's guilty, yet...

He realized it.

There were _two killers_ for this murder. Allen Road was one of them, no doubt about that. McLaughlin was just trying to prove the witness's involvement in this murder all this time.

_"All I'm after is the _truth_."_

A prosecutor's job is to prove the defendant guilty, and convict _all criminals_ that are found.

She, a defense attorney, who cared little about defendants, was merely catching another criminal for the prosecution.

Edgeworth smiled inwardly. Looks like he's going to win this one after all.

_"Don't go killing any mockingbirds."_

His eyes widened before shaking his head slightly to regain his concentration. He then spoke, "Miss McLaughlin."

"Do you need something?" she raised a brow in amusement.

"The guns you sent to the forensics," his eyes narrowed, "What are you trying to prove from those?"

_**DOON.**_

Everyone turned to the courtroom doors and found Kudo walking in, a black bag in his hand. He bowed to everyone in the courtroom, but...

"You're late!" Uncharacteristically, it was McLaughlin who snapped at him, "What took you? !"

"Uh, Big Sis," Merhea was the one to speak first, "You did send him to our _personal forensics team_, after all. And not to mention, the results you were after were pretty much _almost impossible_ to get, I can imagine."

"I sincerely apologize for my lateness," Kudo spoke with a short bow, "But Merhea is correct, it took a while for that... _"Undertaker"_... to find the results. Fortunately, we were able to find the proof that shows which one is the _real_ killing bullet." He held up a slip of paper with his gloved hand, a strange smile on his lips. He bowed again as he held it out to McLaughlin, "For you, my good friend."

McLaughlin took the paper and read it, a smirk forming in her lips, "Well, well, well," there was amusement in her tone, "Looks like I was right after all. Hmph," she turned to Kudo, "You have all done an admirable job getting this evidence."

"Be sure that you tell the others that once this is all over," Kudo bowed his head with a smile in response.

"Very well," she said, amused, before turning to the Judge, "Your Honor, due to these results, it's safe to say that both Mr. Allen Road and Mr. Randy Omar... are the ones who have led Dr. Ivan Corriger to his death.

"What?" the Judge blinked, "Why do you say that?"

"The forensics have found traces of brain cells," McLaughlin nodded slowly, "It's _very faint_, but it's there."

"But haven't we already established the fact that the brain cells were found on both bullets?"

It was then Edgeworth realized, for he spoke out loud, "Not the bullets, the _gun barrel_..."

"You got it," she said, "The gun that Mr. Kudo found in the victim's gun locker showed very faint signs of brain cells in the barrel. This alone proves that the gun the prosecution provided for us... is the gun that unleashed the real killing bullet. Oh, and Mr. Edgeworth?"

"Yes?"

"I've been doing most of the work here," she laughed a little, "So I'll let you humor everyone, care to tell us the series of events that transpired?"

Well, this will be a rather easy task, thanks to the evidence she just provided. Smiling a little, Edgeworth made a small bow, "Very well."

While ignoring the glares of Manfred von Karma _(Don't look at him. Focus on the trail now, Edgeworth.)_, the prosecutor spoke his theory, "So what you're saying is... First, both Allen Road and Randy Omar conspired to murder Dr. Corriger. Then, once Mr. Road was invited to Dr. Corriger's house for the night, he unlocked the door to the apartment. This, of course, allowed Mr. Omar to enter. Before Mr. Omar arrived, Mr. Road somehow opened the gun locker..." he almost trailed off as McLaughlin filled in the gap.

"He knew the code," she simply shrugged, "I confirmed it with the victim's wife, she knows it too. However, she has a solid alibi, so she's not a suspect. Anyway," she nodded, "Continue, Mr. Edgeworth."

"Gladly," he nodded, "Once he obtained the guns, they were both planning on killing the victim with two shots. Probably to make it look like a robber came in to kill the victim, and the defendant to make an attempt to save Dr. Corriger's life."

"Yes," McLaughlin agreed, "However, things didn't go to plan when the police came. First of all, only one gun was found, and that had Mr. Road's fingerprints on it, which was enough 'evidence' to arrest him. The accomplice, Mr. Omar, hid the gun that unleashed the fake killing bullet, while the bullet itself was well hidden until Mr. Kudo and I found it."

"I only have one thing to ask," the Judge said, "If that's the case, then how did the victim's brain cells get on both bullets?"

"I believe that's easy to explain. After Dr. Corriger was shot, the second bullet was dropped in the small pool of blood that came from the victim's head, then it was loaded into the barrel and discharged. The round and barrel become very hot when the gun shoots, which can effectively erase the traces."

Both the witness and the defendant sweated.

"That is why it took our... forensics team over an hour to get the results we were after," Kudo bowed.

"Yes, not to mention, another thing went awry on Mr. Road's part," McLaughlin spoke, "Even though Mr. Omar isn't the real murderer, he is the one who planned for the victim's death. Not to mention, since Mr. Road is the real shooter, he can make a rather... easy scapegoat."

_(A scapegoat...)_ Edgeworth uncomfortably thought to himself. _(For some reason, the word "scapegoat" bothers me...)_

**"OBJECTION!"**

_(...And apparently, Mr. von Karma is not believing a single word we're saying.)_ Edgeworth inwardly sighed. _(Even though all of this is beginning to make sense.)_

"This is complete and utter rubbish!" von Karma slammed his fist against the bench, "For all we know, the evidence could've been forged by these fools!"

The three people in the defense bench, the McLaughlin sisters and Kudo gave him a strange look before looking at each other. Then all of a sudden the sisters bursted out laughing, much to the shock of the court, although Kudo looked like he was just barely resisting the urge to, for he kept his eye closed as he bit his lip.

(What is it about von Karma that they find to be so amusing?) Edgeworth rose a brow.

Manfred von Karma was not pleased, "Why, you little...!"

"Bwahahaha! What's the matter, von Karma?" Emer McLaughlin, the older sister, spoke through her laughs, "You look like as if some kid just shot you in the shoulder!"

_(Huh?)_ Edgeworth rose a brow and blinked as he saw _Manfred von Karma_, the most legendary prosecutor, _freeze_ in his current position, as if he was caught in an act of some sort.

"Seriously!" she continued laughling, "Seriously! _You're_ accusing _us_ of forged evidence?" she laughed more, "Again, seriously! Weren't _you_ the one who got a _penalty_ for knowingly presenting _forged evidence_ about ten years ago at some point?" she was then laughing so much that she started banging her fist against the bench, although Merhea had already calmed down.

_(...! So she knows about von Karma's record.)_ Edgeworth's eyes narrowed slightly as he sweated a little. _(So _that's_ the reason why she doesn't respect him, it was because of that penalty he received in his record. And also because of her being _honest_ enough to the point of entrusting evidence to me... _trusting_...?)_

McLaughlin finally calmed down from her laughing fit, and took a few deep breaths to regain her breath. Having finally recovered, she continued on, "And before we continue, this is how it went in short. Dr. Corriger was killed by both Mr. Allen Road and Mr. Randy Omar, but Omar betrayed Road in order to use him as a scapegoat. Mr. Edgeworth," she had a sharp look in her eyes as she spoke with a smirk-like smile, "I believe you can provide us the motive?"

Edgeworth remained silent for a moment, before taking out a piece of a newspaper, ". . . . . . . . . . Yes," he held it up, "This is their motive."

"A newspaper clipping?" the Judge blinked.

"About three months ago, there was an accident at the facility where the victim, the witness, and the defendant worked at," Edgeworth explained, "During that tragedy, someone died. Rumors then circulated that Dr. Corriger has tampered with the gas pipes on the boiler that was being used in there, an explosion occurred, which caused that person's death."

"...They're right."

Everyone turned to look at the defendant, Allen Road, who walked to the witness stand on his own.

"So you're confessing to your crime?" McLaughlin scowled at him, "Why would you want to kill the victim?"

"...He killed my fiancée," Road simply spoke, "I found out when I found her engagement ring, which I've given to her, amongst Dr. Corriger's possessions. He loved her, too, you know. He was even planning to divorce his current wife just to get her..."

"Um," she blinked, confused, "Forgive me for sounding ignorant, but if he loved her, why didn't he kill you?"

"Because he meant to kill me, but she ended up dying instead. Anyway, I admit it," the defendant slammed his hands against the witness stand, "I did it. I killed Dr. Corriger. And Omar-"

"You're not taking me down with you!" Omar shouted as he dashed for the courtroom exit.

"He's trying to escape!" the Judge yelled as the crowd started shouting, "Bailiff-...!"

_**Chik. Clang!**_

Silence loomed in the courtroom instantly as soon as they saw two people blocking Randy Omar's path of escaping.

Kudo, who was standing in front of the courtroom doors, held a large gray broad sword about as large as him with just his right hand, which was aimed to the witness's waist. As for McLaughlin, who was behind the witness, held a long white-golden-colored gun in her left hand while aiming at the back of his head. Kudo had a serious look on his face while McLaughlin... had a look of insanity on hers.

"Where," she tilted her head like a doll would every time she spoke with an insane smirk on her face, "...do you think... you're going?"

_(How... did they get those weapons in here?)_ Edgeworth shivered. _(And what on _Earth_ is with McLaughlin?)_

The way McLaughlin was standing was rather questionable. Her whole body slouched while holding the gun, her right arm dangled slightly as her hair covered some of her face. Her legs were also rather stiff, as if they were the only things to keep her from falling.

She was basically nothing more than a doll with insanity.

While the witness was frozen in place, the Judge slowly spoke, "Erm... bailiff... please take both the defendant and the, erm... witness... away please."

Two bailiffs did as they were told, but it took them a moment because they were rather intimidated by McLaughlin's insane smirk. All it took was some words from Kudo and the rest is history for that part.

As soon as the two apprehended people disappeared, McLaughlin went back to her normal self as she put the white-gold gun away in the inside of her tailcoat. Kudo did the same thing, but his giant sword, which looked more like a giant claymore, disappeared as he put it away, almost like a classic magician's trick...

"Come on, Merhea," McLaughlin finally spoke to her sister, "We're going home. Your Honor," she looked up at the Judge, "I leave the rest to you."

Having said her last words, she pushed the courtroom doors open and left with her sister and co-council following, but Merhea stopped and looked back for a moment, waved at Edgeworth a little, then ran to catch up with her sister and friend.

"Hmm..." the Judge's cough broke the silence, "This case is perfectly clear. This court finds the defendant, Mr. Allen Road..."

A slam of the gavel.

**"Guilty."**

Once the call for adjournment was made, Edgeworth and von Karma left the courtroom. and went into the prosecutor's lobby.

"Hmph," von Karma fumed a little, "I've never been so humiliated in all my...!"

Edgeworth decided to remain silent for the time being, knowing that the veteran prosecutor will just snap at him if he were to say something. To Edgeworth, getting the guilty verdict was all that mattered to him.

_"Don't go killing any mocking birds."_

Edgeworth placed his hand against his forehead, trying to get rid of the words that McLaughlin had drilled into his head, for it was beginning to give him a headache.

_"Practice makes perfect, yet nobody's perfect,"_ he recalled Merhea speak back at the recess, _"Rather contradictory, wouldn't you think?"_

"Edgeworth."

"Sir?" he turned to his mentor.

"Even though we have won the guilty verdict," von Karma growled, "That foolish fly made fools out of us!"

_(...Actually, I think she made a fool out of __**you**__.)_ Edgeworth thought, but kept the thought to himself before remembering something, "Sir."

"What is it?" von Karma growled, still irritated at McLaughlin.

"What..." it took him a split second to find the words, "...exactly comes to your mind when you hear the word _'Mockingbird'_?"

von Karma rose a brow, "And why are you asking me something as foolish as that?"

_"von Karma has already made that same mistake...,"_ McLaughlin's words echoed into his mind, _"...for over __**thirty-five years**__."_

"...You're right, it is foolish," Edgeworth shook his head, "Forget what I said."

* * *

><p>Even when five years have passed, Edgeworth could never forget that case. McLaughlin's words reached him at last, having finally understood the meaning of the advice she had given him.<p>

Don't go killing any mockingbirds.

All a mockingbird does is sing innocence, all of the innocent people who were declared guilty for a crime they didn't do... _they_ were the mockingbirds that had died. In other words, don't destroy their innocence.

All that matters is the truth.

Defense attorneys and prosecutors exist in order to give everyone a fair trail. Both attorneys are to erase the paradoxes one by one, them claw and scratch for every fact they can find, and then... they find the truth.

* * *

><p><strong>Turnabout Mockery - End<strong>

* * *

><p><strong>To those who want to know why I used a Mockingbird, you'll understand what I mean if you've read <em>To Kill a Mockingbird<em> by Harper Lee. In that book, the Mockingbird was used as a symbol of innocence. That, and it has "mock" in it, like "mockery." I primarily made this just to poke fun out of Manfred von Karma, hence the title. Sure, he and Edgeworth had perfect records full of guilty verdicts until their defeats by Phoenix Wright, but that doesn't mean that they haven't come across any strange defense attorneys before now, would they? Pfft... I just wanted to make von Karma frustrated in one of the trails he's been in.**

**If you want to know what happened to McLaughlin and co., they're still alive. I did consider having them at the ending, but I couldn't find a proper place to put it in, so I left it out... thus leaving their fates unknown. And yes, they're still alive even after five years.**

**Allen Road's name is derived from road terms, "Allen" is from "Alley" and "Road" is from, well... "Road." ****Randy Omar's name is derived from "Random." Yeah, weird, I know, but I can't be the only person that's done this.**

**Dr. Ivan Corriger's name has a different origin, "Corriger" is French for "Correct" and "Ivan" sounded a bit like the beginning of "isolation." It was actually the name of a character - who has a completely different personality compared to the one here - I was planning to use for a deceased scientist who lived in isolation for a Mega Man X fanfic, but I scrapped it. I might make it, but only once I can come up with a proper storyline for it.**

****Bonus points to those who get the reference about the "Undertaker."****


End file.
